YAHOO [BRIEFING.COM]: A midmorning drop of more than 1% threatened to give the stock market its eighth straight loss before buyers began to bid stocks higher in afternoon action.

Listlessness among stocks during early trade caused the S&P 500 to roll over to a new 2011 low. From its 10-day high to this session's low, the S&P 500 was down more than 8%.

Data didn't do anything to stop sellers from applying more pressure, even though the July ADP Employment Change showed that private payrolls increased by 114,000, which is greater than the increase of 100,000 that had been widely expected. The July ISM Services Index was expected to improve to 53.7, but instead it slipped to 52.7 from 53.3 in the prior month. Factory orders for June fell by 0.8%, which is less steep than the 1.0% decline that had been broadly anticipated.

Selling pressure in recent sessions has led to several technical breakdowns, but stocks were able to secure support at the 38% retracement level of the surge that spanned from July 2010 to May 2011. Support at that point helped trigger a rebound that many traders began to chase.

Although it initially encountered some resistance, the Nasdaq had an easier time turning higher, mostly because tech stocks began to provide leadership. Tech stocks collectively climbed 1.2%. Many consider MasterCard (MA 338.47, +39.98) to be a financial play, but the stock was actually a top performer in the tech sector. Its surge to a new record high came after the company posted an impressive quarterly report. There was a barrage of other earnings reports, most of which were better than expected, but none had any real impact on broad market trade.

As a group, energy stocks suffered a 0.6% loss, which made them the worst performers of the day. Weakness in the space came as oil prices fell almost 2% to close pit trade slightly below $92 per barrel. While weekly inventory data showed a slightly smaller-than-expected build, macro concerns continue to weigh on the price of oil. Oil has actually closed lower in five of the past six sessions.

An interest in safety sent gold futures higher by 1.3% to settle pit trade at $1665.70 per ounce, while silver soared 3.9% to close at $41.69 per ounce. Gold actually registered an all-time high of $1675.90 per ounce in overnight trade. Silver set a multi-month high of $42.06 per ounce.

A weaker dollar made it easier for precious metals to push higher. The dollar ended the day with a 0.7% loss against a collection of competing currencies. The dollar's downturn was partly attributable to efforts by the Swiss National Bank to weaken the franc.

Share volume on the NYSE cleared 1 billion for the fourth straight session. That marks a sharp pick up in participation over the paltry volume levels seen on the Big Board during recent months.

The flight to safety in precious metals continued as more poor economic data and continued concerns about macro conditions in Europe hammered other asset classes. December gold futures finished higher by 1.3% at $1665.70 per ounce, while September silver gained 3.9% to end at $41.69 per ounce. Gold futures rallied in overnight trade to an all-time high of $1675.90 per ounce. The remainder of trade was spent in a range just shy of that level. Silver futures traded to session highs of $42.06 in mid-morning trade, but pulled back from those levels as the close approached.

Crude oil in the September contract closed at $91.93 per barrel, its worst closing price in over a month, for a 1.9% loss. Inventory data showed a modestly smaller-than-expected build in crude oil, but a sizeable build in gasoline inventories. Still, macro concerns remained the primary driver of action around the energy component, driving crude oil prices lower for the fifth time in six sessions. September natural gas ended lower by 1.6% at $4.09 per MMBtu. Futures sold off sharply following the open of pit trade then extended that sell-off into afternoon trade, notching lows at $4.07, before recouping some losses into the close.

Advancing Sectors: Tech +1.2%, Telecom +1.0%, Industrials +0.8%, Consumer Discretionary +0.7%, Consumer Staples +0.6%, Financials +0.5%, Materials +0.4%, Health Care +0.1%
Declining Sectors: Utilities -0.1%, Energy -0.6%DJ30 +29.82 NASDAQ +23.83 NQ100 +0.9% R2K +0.8% SP400 +0.5% SP500 +6.29 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1519/2.61 bln/1034 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1743/1.35 bln/1262